So we went to Atari and said, 'Hey, we've got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us? Or we'll give it to you. We just want to do it. Pay our salary, we'll come work for you.' And they said, 'No.' So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, 'Hey, we don't need you. You haven't got through college yet.Apple Computer Inc. founder Steve Jobs on attempts to get Atari and H-P interested in his and Steve Wozniak's personal computer

Evolution’s problem with self-destruction

WHY do living things die? Obviously, things kill each other – that’s part of the natural order. But what causes “natural” death? It is a question that splits biologists. It has become like a game of ping pong – over the years, theories have been batted back and forth as new evidence comes to light.

One answer is that death is simply necessary – to avoid overcrowding, for instance. But evolution doesn’t – can’t – select for a “death switch” because evolution is supposed to be all about the individual. And yet there does seem to be a death switch – researchers have managed to locate genetic switches that massively extend the lifespan of some nematode worms.

That might seem a long way removed from where we’re at, but there are vertebrates that live a very, very long time. Blandings Turtles, just don’t seem to get old and decrepit, for example. Teasing out why that might be is a tricky job – but potentially worth it.